Hey, I understand Sign ups are closed but absolutely HAD to post praising the RP (after Skymin recommended I give it a look)! Reading through the background info provided it is staggeringly well thought out and a pleasure to read. Hope the RP continues to go from strength to strength for all those involved!

EDIT: I've been told the Sign Ups have been reopened and as such here is an SU (Apologise for any poor grammar I havent had a chance to proof read yet but will do so in the morning):

Spoiler:

Name: Rickard MayceAge: 22Gender: MaleRace: HumanCountry of Origin: Ethora, The Golden IslesAppearance: Rickard stands at 5ft 10” and is of a lean build. His skin has been left a deep brown by time spent in the sun and bears many marks of a tough life. He could not be considered an attractive man although his poor looks are due more to his lifestyle than his pedigree. His face is sharp, with high cheekbones and a crooked, pointed nose. The ears are small, with the left one missing a large section that appears to have been removed with a dull blade leaving the wound ragged in appearance. His thin lips sit amidst a neat beard kept so short it could almost be called stubble. A scar stretches from the right ear to the chin following the jaw line closely. The eyes peer out from below thick black eyebrows and above deep black bags. The whites of the eyes are bloodshot from too much ale and too little sleep, the irises are coloured a deep blue which rivals the sea surrounding the Golden Isles he once called home. Surrounding the face is ebony hair worn loose and at shoulder length.

Rickard’s clothing is kept simple, functional and dark. Preferring the swift sword play of his home islands Rickard feels clumsy in heavy armour and so opts for a mail hauberk, leather leggings, boots and gloves. Rickard prefers not to wear a hood or coif to aid in his movement and peripheral vision. The only ornamentation upon his armour is a single plate of armour covering the heart decorated with an enamelled black swan. This ornamentation is purely optional.

Personality: Rickard has been gifted with a sharp tongue and the dark sense of humour to make use of it. He is fully aware of these traits and takes great pleasure in the use of them. His tongue is not only used to harm however and can be put to use in negotiations and acquiring what he needs. Rickard is talkative and rarely caught without a word to say on the matter (even if those words are pointless quips). He also understands that words can take a man only so far and has gotten to where he is today only by realising this fact. Calm and slow to anger Rickard can appear lazy and even disrespectful at times. These qualities all serve to charm, infuriate and confuse people in equal measures.

Rickard Mayce has made a name for himself as the leader of the Shadow Swan Trading Company. As the leader of such an outfit Rickard has gathered contacts with people and guilds present in most major port cities. Rickard and the SSTC take little interest in the fighting of lords and have loyalty to none. He follows the gold, trading with any and all sides of a conflict. He is not as cold as he may at first seem however and has been known to smuggle goods to common people caught in siege situations for little or no payment. He reasons that this is not interfering if the lords themselves do not receive the items.

Some may believe such a man to be amoral and this would be understandable. However Rickard has sworn never to again turn to pirating or theft of any kind. These warped morals Rickard holds close and instils in all of his crew.

The hard life Rickard has led and risk of death at each turn have left a man who takes many risks and lives completely in the moment. Although he is able to plan and does so in his professional capacity outside of this he seems to lurch from one moment in the next as if diving blindly into the future.

History: The Mayce family are the lords of a small coastal holdfast a day’s fast ride from Stormguard to the South. As such they are the bannermen of the Taimors. The emblem of the Mayce family is a silver swan with wings spread over a field of deep blue. An ebony sword dissects the sword vertically with the neck of the swan wrapped around the hilt. The family words are “Rise on the bounty of the waters”.

Rickard was the second son of Lord Jorrick Mayce by his first wife. His mother had died of sudden illness when Rickard was 7. Rickard enjoyed the company of his older brother Brandon and younger half-siblings Alexander and Elizabeth, the two of which are twinned. Lord Mayce idolised Brandon as his perfect son and heir to the Mayce lands. As such Rickard would often be left alone as his brother, a mere year his elder, attended court with his father and learnt of the post that one day would be his.

On Brandon’s 12th name day he was to be sent as a ward to the capital of Rowanion. Lord Mayce was dumbstruck when the raven had arrived bearing the offer of warding his prized son and had jumped at the opportunity to further his house in the eyes of his liege lord. He was less pleased with the prospect of his prodigal son leaving and being left with Rickard and two babes barely days from their wet nurse’s teat.

It was mid-afternoon when Brandon was able to escape the madness of the preparations for his leaving and find Rickard in the tower overlooking the narrow water separating the Golden Isles from the mainland. The two boys were soon playing games as they always had and as usual they moved from the holdfast grounds to the surrounding fields near the cliff. Rickard had always been the swifter swordsman although his brother had more power however neither was more skilful than the other.

The sun was setting and the boys continued to spar by the Cliffside when their father finally found them. The old man was leading a large rowan gelding towards them fully saddled. A smile was evident on his face, something which was a common sight for Brandon but a rarity for Rickard. Brandon spied the horse and dropped his sword. His father nodded confirming the beautiful horse was indeed for him. Rickard chose now to strike. The sword had barely left his brothers hand as he swept his feet from beneath him. His brother fell backwards clutching at the loose earth of the cliff. His father broke into a run towards them. Rickard dropped the wooden sword. Brandon fell.

The memories of that day from then on are a vague and bitter memory for Rickard now. Images of his brother’s broken body on the rocks below and his fathers anguished screams and wails haunt his dreams to this day.

It was the next day that Rickard was called to his father’s solar and told that he was no longer welcome. He relinquished his right to lordship and was exiled in that same day. Given only the clothes and food he could carry, the gelding meant for his brother and the wooden sword that had taken his brother’s life.

After half a year living in Stormguard Rickard decided to stow away on a ship to the mainland and leave The Golden Isles behind. He did so however was soon discovered. The trading vessel he had chosen had been a small, agile ship with what turned out to be a kindly captain. The captain invited the boy onto the crew as Cabin Boy and Rickard learnt the hardship of a life on the waves.

This blissful existence lasted a mere year before the ship was raided by Highman pirates. The pirates began to slaughter the crew and would have killed Rickard had he not snatched up the sword of his unconscious captain and begun to fight. The boy was rusty but still remembered the sparring lessons the Master At Arms of his old home had taught him. By the time the boy was disarmed three pirates lay dead. The pirate captain demanded to see the boy and made him an offer: His life or his captains. Rickard fretted over the decision but soon took his old captain head. He joined the crew of the pirate ship and spent the rest of his formative years on board as they raided traders and ports alike.
At the age of 18 Rickard had worked his way to first mate under the captain who had spared him. The ship was struggling and morale was low. It was at this point that Rickard was approached with plans of mutiny. He agreed and helped lead the mutiny against his former captain soon adding his blade to that taken from Rickard’s first captain and his body to the sea.

Rickard took control with force and charisma. He appealed to the greed and lust of the crew with promises of gold to buy rum and women. When some would not listen they met the end of his blade or took their chances of reaching the shore before drowning. It was after he gained this control that Rickard swore to never pirate again. He swore to the nine and the one and any other god that was listening that day. The ship was returned to the nearest port and the loot divided between the crew as promised. With his cut Rickard rebranded the boat The Shadow Swan and it was in the next 4 years that The Shadow Swan Trading Company was built to its state today.

Weapon Preference: Rickard typically wields two blades: one long sword and one short sword. Initially these were the blades taken from the captains he had killed however with the recent success of his Trading Company he has had new matching blades forged as well as a matching brace of knives of varying lengths. The blades all possess hilts stylised to look like the shadow swan Rickard has taken as his sigil. RP Sample:HereOther:Rickard’s ThemeSide: Knights of Ekilore